2018: A year of pivotal events in Central Asia

Analysts view the summit of Turkic-speaking countries as a harbinger of a potentially powerful union of countries with similar cultures and outlooks. [Azerbaijani presidential website]

US President Donald Trump (right) welcomes Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev (left) to the White House last May 16. [US Embassy in Uzbekistan]

US President Donald Trump (right) and Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev (left) last January 16 shake hands at the White House, where they discussed strengthening co-operation in a number of areas. [Kazakh presidential website]

By Kanat Altynbayev

ALMATY -- Central Asia saw the start of processes leading towards regional integration and international co-operation in 2018, reversing political barriers and isolationist policies in place for many years, observers say.

A major breakthrough

With Uzbekistan, Central Asia's most populous state, pushing for more openness inside its borders and with its neighbours, fruitful meetings of the region's leaders took place throughout the year.

Although the intention behind such a session was not to make official decisions, political analysts say the significance of the event cannot be overstated, given that it was the first meeting of regional leaders in nearly a decade.

"We must solve all problems ourselves and ensure prosperity for the people," Nazarbayev said at the meeting. "That's why we're meeting."

"In the past, the Central Asian countries were the pawns of superpowers and met as part of their alliances, like the Eurasian Economic Union or the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation," he told Caravanserai. "Now the co-ordination of the Central Asian nations has emerged at a new level, without a minder."

Participants and observers praised Mirziyoyev for initiating the meeting, a significant departure from precedent and opening doors for future co-operation.

His predecessor, the late Islam Karimov, isolated Uzbekistan from its neighbours and allowed tensions over water and borders to fester.

Summit of Turkic-speaking states

The presidents of the council's member states -- Kyrgyzstan's Jeenbekov, Kazakhstan's Nazarbayev, Azerbaijan's Ilham Aliyev and Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdoğan -- discussed their countries' ties at the summit.

Mirziyoyev and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban attended as guests of honour at the September 3 event. Uzbekistan under Karimov never joined the bloc.

The summit brought hope of greater integration, co-operation and a strong union of countries with similar cultures and outlooks, analysts say.

The countries are laying a solid foundation because they are taking genuine steps towards consolidation, not just holding meetings, said Almaty-based political analyst Islam Kurayev.

They are upgrading bilateral relationships and sharing valuable experience, he said.

The main driver for the meeting was Turkey, while Uzbekistan's interest as a future member of the union is vital, Kurayev told Caravanserai, adding that harnessing the potential of Turkic-speaking countries could lead to a true breakthrough in bringing together the Turkic world.

"Even if the process takes a decade or two ... a new generation with new ideas, which will solve problems of government-to-government relations differently, will grow up," Kurayev said.

The summit coincided with the 3rd World Nomad Games, held in Cholpon-Ata September 2-8. The foreign presidents arrived a day before the summit to enjoy the event.

Uzbekistan and Tajikistan: friendship and co-operation

Some of the biggest rapprochements in 2018 included that between Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.

After 20 years of what the media described as a "cold war", the two neighbours thawed relations dramatically.

For years the two countries had the worst bilateral relationship among the Central Asian states, complicated by the Rogun Dam, which Tajikistan built in pursuit of energy independence.

Downstream Uzbekistan expressed concerns of a potentially catastrophic dam failure but also feared upstream Tajikistan's ability to cut off its water -- vital to its entire economy, including agriculture.

In 2018 the countries finally ended the long-running dispute with an agreement for the joint construction of two hydro-electric plants in Tajikistan.

Mirziyoyev's friendlier foreign policy is the main factor in the thaw, said Komron Rakhimov, a graduate student in international law at the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia in Moscow.

Relations between Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are important first and foremost in light of regional security since both countries play a key role in addressing the Afghan conflict and the threats that stem from it," Rakhimov, a native of Tajikistan, told Caravanserai.

Strategic partnerships with the United States

Over the past year, Central Asian countries have openly demonstrated their foreign policy priorities, in which the United States plays a key supporting role.